Psst — Thanks so much for the warm response to our announcement this morning. You totally made our day.

We won’t make 2,013 resolutions, but here are five that we’re announcing publicly to motivate ourselves. Every year we like to share our goals to help keep us accountable (you can see last year’s resolutions, 2011’s here, and 2010’s here). So, without further ado…

#1. Hold On. If anyone’s worried we’ll run out of projects, don’t be. This will probably be our busiest year yet, packed with DIY work and room makeovers. We can’t share every detail yet—some big projects are still under wraps—but there are plenty of untouched spaces in the house waiting for attention: Clara’s big-girl room, the front porch, the carport, the guest bathroom, and more. Beyond these, we have larger plans in store and can’t wait to share progress as things develop. (And no, Mom: I’m not pregnant.)

#2. Chat Things Up. You, our readers, are the heart of Young House Love. We’ve talked about wanting to involve you more in this space (we mentioned it before), and many of you suggested forums where people could post photos, swap advice, share ideas, and inspire one another. We’ve been researching options that won’t crash the site or demand hours of daily moderation. Our plan is to pursue this in the spring after book tour season winds down. Fingers crossed for a smooth rollout—no crashies, no crashies.

#3. Be Realistic. We love avoiding blog stage fright by imagining we’re just talking to ten people, but the reality is our readership is much larger. Sites with millions of hits a month often have a whole team behind them, and we’re just two people—a guy and a gal—juggling projects, posts, a book tour, site coding, and a handful of secret plans. This resolution is a reminder that we can’t do the work of ten people no matter how hard we try. We’re committed and passionate, but we need to stop beating ourselves up and accept our limits.

We prefer to keep things grassroots—no plans to hire people to answer comments, write posts, or program the site—so being efficient and realistic is key. We’re not a big network; we’re John and Sherry from the blog. That personal touch is something readers say they enjoy, so it’s time we fully embrace it.

#4. Reclaim Our Lives. This ties closely to being realistic. For years we’ve struggled to find a healthy balance and often joked that we’d sleep “next year.” Well, it’s next year, and we want to stop staying up until 1 a.m. finishing projects, writing posts, and juggling book responsibilities while keeping up with everyday tasks like laundry and groceries. We moved from NYC to Virginia in 2005 to escape a nonstop work schedule, and we don’t want to slip back into that pattern.

Many readers said they’d be fine with fewer posts, but we’re not ready to cut back that dramatically. Instead we’re reducing from eight posts a week to seven, while continuing our usual two posts over on Young House Life. Looking back at our monthly roundups, we’re always surprised at how much gets done, and this small change shouldn’t affect the overall output. It will simply give us a bit more breathing room—one less weekly post to photograph, edit, proofread, and answer questions about. We expect a posting pattern of two posts on Monday, one on Tuesday, two on Wednesday, one on Thursday, and one on Friday, plus two posts across the Young House Life site.

This adjusted pace will let us spend more time brainstorming, completing projects, and recharging with family—three things that lead to better, more thoughtful content. Our goal is to stay in this for the long haul without burning out, and a healthier rhythm will help us do that.

#5. Be Free. You often respond enthusiastically to posts that go beyond DIY: personal stories, life updates, and odd little musings. Posts like my piece on breastfeeding or John’s post about running sparked far more conversation than many project posts, and that reminds us it’s fun to share more than just painting and building. Even a quirky Friday post like five weird things about me drew over a thousand comments and some of the funniest responses on the site. Those spontaneous, stream-of-consciousness moments keep the blog light, entertaining, and human.

So that’s our list for the year. What are you resolving? On a personal level, I’m determined to simplify—really pare down the clutter. I have too many gadgets, decorative items, pillows, gift bags, pens, and miscellaneous things that add up to a lot of excess. I’m aiming to embrace the simpler lifestyle John and I had in NYC when we lived in tiny studios with no attics or basements to stash stuff. Less is more in so many ways, and I’m excited to work toward that.